Cocaine
by opalheart12
Summary: Lydelle Justice is the new sheriff in Bon Temps. She is frigid, cold, and ruthless in her search for justice. But what happens when she is stronger than Eric Northman himself and he can't get enough of her? Why is Lydelle in Bon Temps?
1. Chapter 1

_**a/n: don't own true blood sadly….just my characters….**_

"You doin' good ova der, _cher_?" The slow accented voice of Miss Jeanetta asked as I drove down the road toward my own home.

"Yes, ma'am. I'm almost done." I said smiling.

"Make sho you come ova when ya done. I'm makin' peach cobbla!" Miss Jeanetta replied waving her wrinkly dark hand.

"Will do, ma'am. You have a good day now, hear?" I smiled at the old Black woman before driving further on down the road to my own home.

Miss Jeanetta, I had learned, was an old Black woman from New Orleans. She had moved to Bon Temps with her great niece Emily who had given her the house when she decided to move to California. She was always baking things for me.

My home was a small white two story home with three bedrooms, one on the bottom floor and two on the top. My kitchen and living room were the largest rooms in the house. I'd used one of the three bedrooms for an office and used the other for her armory. It'd taken a lot of time to build the room to perfection but it was done. It'd been the first room I'd even paid attention to when I moved to Bon Temps.

I walked into my home and began cooking some steak and pasta. I put on an old country record as I cooked, humming along lightly while I stirred the pasta. When I was done, I ate dinner alone in my dining room before going to take a shower before work.

I was just getting dressed when my cell phone rang. The silence inside my house seemed to intensify with every ring of my phone. I picked it up and pressed talk.

"Yeah."

"Sheriff, we need you down here ASAP. We got a white male, looks to be about in his 40's or 50's, and he's dead. Eyes wide open. We don't see any gunshot wounds, stab wounds, nothing like that from where he's sitting. Looks perfectly healthy. Except he's dead. How soon can you be down here?" the gravelly voice of Deputy Marcus said from the other end.

"Give me 15 minutes." I said before hanging up.

I got dressed, wearing black jeans with a tight navy blue wife beater before sliding my feet into black boots. I pulled a black leather jacket over my shoulders, as it was cool outside tonight. My dark hair was straight and naturally curled at the ends. Never used a straightening iron in my whole damn life.

"Thank you for comin', Sheriff Justice. I know it's late and all." Deputy Marcus said as he led me to the car on the deserted road outside Bon Temps.

"Aw, nonsense. It's my job." I said, chuckling as I stepped over a tree root.

The car was parked on the shoulder of I-18, the highway that led from Bon Temps to Shreveport. The man inside was sitting in the driver's side of the car, hands still on the steering wheel. His eyes were open and unseeing. He looked to be about 53 years old and was bald.

"Time of death?" I asked.

"No clue. Coroner's out right now vacationin' in Quebec. Said he'll take a look when he gets back." Marcus said.

I put on two latex gloves and pulled open the car door slowly. The man fell out of the car and onto the damp ground, his hands still in the position of holding a steering wheel. I frowned and asked Marcus for a flashlight.

He handed it to me and I held it in my right hand as I searched his pockets. Inside one was his wallet. I opened it and saw an Oregon license, just issued only six days ago.

"I got an I.D." I said.

"Yeah?"

I shifted the flashlight to my left hand as I looked for any cuts, bruises, or gunshot wounds but could find none, so I moved to his neck.

"Hey, Marcus?" I said slowly.

"Hm?"

"Hand me that camera. I think I got somethin'." I said. He handed me the Nikon and stepped back. I stood and took pictured at different angles of the man's body, zooming in on his neck.

"Name's Andrew Bryce Taint. 54 years old with an Oregon license given to him a few days ago. What's he doin' all the way down here?" I said as I looked down at the dead man.

"That's what we're gonna find out, Sheriff Justice." Marcus replied.

"Damn right, we will. Call in the Shreveport coroner, Dell Comeaux. He owes me a favor. He won't have any problem holdin' this body for us."

"Will do, Sheriff."

"And Marcus?" I said.

"Yes, sheriff?"

"A.B. Taint's got bite marks on his neck. Where we got vampires around here, Marcus?" I asked as I took out my cell phone.

"There's only one in Bon Temps, Bill Compton, but he's been out of town for a while. His story's verified. There's a vampire club in Shreveport, though." Marcus answered.

"Take care of this. I'm gon' go pay that place a visit."

Fangtasia. This place was trifling and horrible. There was an insanely long line milling from the door and out the parking lot. All kinds of creations were standing outside in all kinds of clothes and lack there of. I fingered my pistols holstered at my waist and hoped I wouldn't have to use them. I took out my badge and walked to the bored looking blonde dominatrix checking IDs at the front door.

"Excuse me, ma'am, I'm Sheriff Lydelle Justice with the Bon Temps Police Department. Could I please speak to the owner of this…place?" I was putting on my nice side. This woman was a vampire. I could tell. She eyes my badge and I speculatively.

"Bon temps, you say?" the woman asked.

"Yes, ma'am." I replied.

"Follow me." She said.

Much to the dismay of the odd characters outside the club, the vampire woman walked inside the club. I followed behind her, barely managing to get through the throng of miscreants gyrating all over the dance floor.

The woman led me past a rather misplaced looking throne of a chair, past the bar where an ominous Native American man stood, eyeing me as I walked by, to an office. It took a hell of a lot to scare me. I'd seen everything that could possibly scare a person from torture, mutilation, insects, claustrophobia, everything. If you could be afraid of it, I'd seen it happen or had it happen to me. I was a strong woman, which was what my father never ceased to tell me.

The woman knocked on the door twice before opening it and parading inside. I followed behind her and leaned against the wall, my black trademark Stetson parked on top of my head and covering my eyes as I played with the pistol at my side. I was aware that the woman was talking but my years of experience told me to be aware of my surroundings. Soon, the woman left, closing the door behind her, and I looked up.

Sitting at the desk was a very handsome looking man with shoulder length blonde hair and icy blue eyes. At the moment, he was wearing a navy blue t-shirt and dark jeans, though I couldn't see what else he was wearing, nor did I care. I could see every visible line and contour of his muscles and noted that he was most definitely an okay looking guy.

"Good evenin', sir. My name is Sheriff Lydelle Justice. I'm with the Bon Temps Police Department and Sheriff Office. I just wanted to ask you a few questions." My voice was hard, determined, and cool. I knew the kind of guy I was dealing with just from looking at him.

He was a vampire, obviously. He knew he was dangerous and probably flaunted it from time to time. He was more than likely in a position of authority more than just owning a club. He thought highly of himself ad considered himself God's gift to women and Earth.

"Good evening. My name is Eric Northman. As you have probably guessed, I own the place." He replied blandly. He was looking down at some papers and filling them out quickly.

I took out two photos of A.B. Taint's body and walked toward Eric's desk. I sat them down at the edge of the desk.

"You know this man?" I asked.

Eric looked up, first at the pictures, then me. "He looks familiar, yes. I believe I've seen him here a few times."

"Within the last six days?"

"He was here last night, actually." Eric answered, still with minimal interest. I was slowly getting ticked off and I inwardly regulated my anger.

"Listen, Mr. Northman, I know you're a very busy man. But I need your cooperation. You look like an old vampire. What are a few minutes to the centuries you've more than likely been alive for?" I said. It was the best way I could say what I meant without saying what I meant. He got the message.

"Perhaps you're right." He replied.

"Exactly. Now, the victim's name is Andrew Bryce Taint, possibly referred to as A.B. or Andrew. His body was found on the I-18 road which leads from Bon Temps to Shreveport, as you very well know. His license was issued in Oregon a little over a week ago. We found bite marks on his neck and the closest vampire and/or vampire concentration was located here," I said.

"We are aware that the vampire Bill Compton could be counted as a suspect but as he is out of town at the present time, we have ruled him out. My question for you, Mr. Northman, is this: How did this man end up on I-18 dead with only two fresh clean bite marks on his neck?" I explained all this with paced breathing so as not to hurry myself.

"I'm afraid I don't know. We get lots of humans and vampires feeding off of them every night. Who is to say the vampire who gave him those marks is not out there?" Eric asked, pointing to the door.

"Mr. Northman, I am no expert on vampires but I am well aware that one bite would and could not have killed him, and if it did, not like that. There would have been blood runnin' down his neck and there was none there. He was already dead when he received those bite marks, which means that some vampire fed off his corpse. Do you know who it was?" I asked.

Eric stood from his desk and appraised me. I could see the hunger and lust in his eyes and I rolled my own. I already didn't like this guy. He had the attention span of a two year old.

I fingered my pistols again and turned to walk out the door.

"I don't know every vampire that comes here." Eric said. I could tell that he had a faint accent to his voice, possibly Scandinavian, and he was extremely tall, but then, so was I.

I smirked and turned so that my head was to the side. My Stetson still covered my eyes.

"Well, you should. You're the sheriff of area 5, Eric Northman. It's your _job_ to know every vampire that crosses into your area, seein' as it is the largest area in all of Louisiana." I said, my tone icy now. My patience was running extremely thin now.

"Vampires who do not reside in my area must request permission to—"

"I am very much aware of what they must do, Mr. Northman. Now, since you haven't been exactly forthcomin' with just _who_ is goin' in and out of your area, I'm gon' need documents with the names of vampires who've entered and or vacated your area in the last seven days, understood? Besides, you wouldn't want me to report anything about your club to the SPD, would you? I'm sure they'd just love comin' in here and raidin' the place." My tone was falsely warm with a frigid undertone to it.

In a flash, Eric was in front of me, fangs out and his hand around my neck.

"You'll want to take back your words or suffer, Sheriff Justice. I do not respond well to threats." he hissed.

"Neither do I." I hissed back.

In a millisecond my pistol was whipped out and pressed into his sternum. I fired and he flew backward into his desk.

"You have a nice night." I smirked before smoothly exiting his office.

I walked through the club and exited, the blonde vampire at the door giving me a curious look. I unlocked the door to my Cadillac and slid inside, starting the car, and driving away from Fangtasia.

I wasn't stupid. I knew that it would not be the last time I saw Eric Northman. I didn't know just when I would see him which was why I was always loaded everywhere I went the next few days.

This particular day, I was in Merlotte's. It was my off day and I was wearing black skinny jeans and a red tank top with black ankle boots. My dark hair framed my face making my golden eyes stand out even more than they should have.

"Evenin', Sheriff! What can I get for you?" the perky blonde waitress, Sookie, as I'd come to know her, asked.

"Just a glass of Patron, please." I answered, smiling up at her.

It was nearly 7pm now and the sky was now dark. The door to the restaurant opened and everyone's incessant chatter seemed to quiet down. I turned around slowly and saw a man who was no doubt a vampire walking into Merlotte's

He had dark hair that fell into his eyes slightly and hard gray eyes. He was pale, as all vampires were, and had the kind of muscles you only got from doing hard work in the fields. My guess, and I was very good at guessing the stories behind people, was that he was probably turned during or a little after the Civil War.

Sookie sat my glass down and looked lovingly at the man who was now sitting down at a table near a window.

"Sookie, who is that?" I asked as I took a sip of my drink.

She sighed adoringly and smiled at me the kind of smile only people smiled when they were in love.

"Oh, him? That's…He's Bill Compton, the town vampire."

I inclined my head slightly at this. "Really?"

"Mm hm." Sookie looked overjoyed and, not to be a killjoy, I hated that.

"Well, well. I believe Mr. Compton and I need to have a few words." I said absently as I stood and walked slowly to his table. He'd turned to look at me since I'd arisen from my own table and was staring me down since.

I sat down across from him, ignoring the confused and curious stares I was getting from Sookie and the rest of the civilians inside the bar.

"Good evenin', Mr. Compton. I'm Sheriff Lydelle Justice with the Bon Temps Police Department and Sheriff Office. I just…wanted to ask you a few things." I said slowly and deliberately. I knew myself well enough to know that my Kentuckian accent reared its head most when I spoke slowly.

"Good evenin', Sheriff. I'm not in any trouble am I?" he asked, smiling slightly.

"Not at all, Mr. Compton." I replied, smiling back before I got down to business. I reached into my jacket's inside pocket and took out the pictures of A.B.

"Mr. Compton, do you know this man?" I asked.

Bill looked down at the picture and frowned slightly.

"No, I'm afraid I do not." He answered, seeming regretful that he couldn't be of much help.

"Now, Mr. Compton, your friend Eric Northman—"

"I assure you, Sheriff, he is no friend of mine." Bill interrupted laughing an easy laugh. I smiled and plowed on.

"Mr. Northman was not very…forthcomin' or helpful when I spoke with him and I was only wonderin' if you knew bout any vampires who may have entered and or vacated area 5 within the last seven days." I said.

"There was only one I _knew_ of. His name is Godric. But, he's the sheriff of area 9 out in Dallas. He's a very peaceful vampire and never resorts to violence. He is a little over 2,000 years old and doesn't require much blood anymore. I don't think it was him who might have done this, Sheriff." Bill answered with a rather thoughtful look upon his face.

"Well, Mr. Compton—"

"Call me Bill."

"Bill. If you have _any_ information at all about any vampire who's been in area 5 at any point in the last seven days, please, do not hesitate to call me. It's very important that I get this information. This man was from all the way up in Oregon and what he's doin' in Louisiana in a small town like this is what I plan on findin' out." I said.

"I understand that, Sheriff, I do, and I wish I could be of more assistance to you." Bill said apologetically.

"Bill, you can help me by lettin' me know when you get any kind of information that'll help me in solvin' this case. Now, tomorrow I gotta look him up and see if he had any family back in Oregon, and if so, I have to let 'em know he's dead. Any help you can give is thoroughly appreciated." I said, smiling warmly at him.

"Yes, Sheriff." Bill replied.

"It was nice talkin' to ya, Bill. Have a good night." I smiled and got up from the table. My glass of Patron was now empty. I put it on the bar and laid a twenty next to it. "Tell Sookie she can keep the change, Tara." I said before exiting from the restaurant.

As I walked to my car, I noticed a figure leaning against it. I could not see his face but I knew who he was. His height gave it all away.

"Mr. Northman." I said, tipping my hat down at him.

"Sheriff Justice." He replied.

"Might I ask what brought you to be leanin' gainst my Cadillac on a fine night like this?"

"You shot me in my sternum, Sheriff _Justice_. Why?" he asked coldly.

"You heard me that night. You don't respond well to threats; neither do I." My tone was extremely icy, almost frigid, and yet again, I was fingering Jet and Lou in my holsters.

Eric was in front of me in a flash.

"I don't quite like your tone, _human._ You may be a sheriff but I could destroy you in a matter of seconds and not think twice about it."

"Of course, Mr. Northman, you could. But I could destroy you equally fast. You know nothin' about me. And just what makes you believe I'm a human?"

"I can smell your blood—"

"Oh, please. Like that matters. Mr. Northman, I am only going to say this once: move away from my car unless you like the look of silver 'cross your body." I spat venomously.

He was in front of me in a flash yet again, both hands wrapped around my throat. Little did he know this had no affect on me whatsoever.

"I have said it once and I will say it again: I do NOT respond well to threats." Eric hissed.

"Oh, I don't think you respond at all, Mr. Northman."

"You are playing a dangerous game with me, Sheriff." He spat.

"Yes, I am, and it is a game I love to play. Let go of me." I said slowly and icily.

He didn't let go; only squeezed tighter. Eric Northman, Sheriff of area 5 was in for a very rude awakening. I grabbed his wrists tightly and closed my eyes for ten seconds, gripping his wrists so hard, I was certain that if he were human, he would have bruises. Suddenly, he dropped me and fell backward to the ground, writhing in pain. His entire body was red. I straddled myself on top of him.

"I want the name of every vampire who has been through your area in the last week, do you understand me? I am tired of beatin' round the bush with you. Now, my patience has run _extremely_ thin, Mr. Northman." I said, though this time my tone would've turned the Sahara into the Arctic.

"You have a very strange method of persuasion I'm afraid I am unfamiliar with." A voice said from behind me.

I turned and saw Bill standing there eyeing the scene speculatively.

"Ever heard of the phrase 'blood boilin'?" I asked, smirking before turning back to Eric.

"Names, please." I said politely to Eric.

He writhed a few more times before the redness began to fade. I smiled wryly the entire time. If there was one thing that annoyed me, it was these damn vampires.

"Paulette Gilderman came exactly seven days ago. Jean Beaux, he was here five days ago. And Lorena…Lorena Gloucester…she was here three nights ago, exactly the night you found your victim." Eric coughed. I could tell he was still in intense pain.

I smiled and bent down to kiss him long and hard on his lips. "You see how easy that was? Hopefully, things won't have to be done the hard way next time." I whispered before I climbed off of him.

"Lorena is my maker, Sheriff, if that helps any." Bill said, sounding scared shitless.

"Thank you, Bill. I'll remember that. Do you know where she currently resides?"

"No, I'm afraid I do not. But if…if I…see her, I'll be sure to let you know." Bill replied shakily.

I thanked him again and climbed into my car, starting it and driving away from Merlotte's. I dialed Marcus' number on my cell phone as I sped.

"Marcus, I got a lead. There was a vampire here the exact night our vic was found. Her name is Lorena Gloucester. Do some background on her for me, would ya?" I said.

"Will do. By the way, our vic was only dead for at least two hours. And Dell did the autopsy himself. Andrew Bryce Taint died of a potassium and sulfuric acidic overdose."

"Ouch. Well, I'm comin' in to the office tomorrow. I need some rest tonight. I was forced to use my powers of persuasion on someone tonight. It took a lot out of me."


	2. Chapter 2

Eric Northman was pissed off after his encounter with Lydelle Justice. How could he have let a human such as she overpower him? And was she human at all? She had literally made his blood boil furiously hot .Eric had not ever felt such pain in his life. No silver chains could measure up to would Lydelle was capable of.

"Are you _still_ thinking about her?" Pam drawled as she filed her nails intently.

Eric glared hard at Pam as he stopped trying to do his work. She looked up at him and matched his cold stare just as equally.

"That human almost killed me. What would you be thinking about?" His voice was calm but there was simply no denying the underlying tone of anger there.

Pam blew the dust from her nails and began filing again. "Well, I wouldn't be thinking about _her_. I'd be thinking of trying to find out more about her. After all, if you just sit there brooding and wondering, you're cooked shit." Pam said before exiting the office in a flash.

Eric glared after her before looking back down at the papers that cluttered his desk. He rolled his eyes and began doing the work again, knowing that since he was distracted, he would either do it wrong or destroy it. Deciding he didn't want to do either one, he stood from his desk and decided to pay Bill Compton a visit.

"Do you know her, Bill?" Sookie asked as she lay in Bill's arm in his bedroom.

"No, I don't know her. She's a good sheriff, though. Just what a town like this needs. Though why she is here in this dump as opposed to a place like New Orleans or Dallas is a mystery to me." Bill replied as he ran his hands through Sookie's hair.

She didn't say anything for a few minutes as she immersed herself in the feeling of Bill. Sookie closed her eyes and probably would've fallen asleep if one thought hadn't hit her like a freight train.

"She's not human." She said quietly though suddenly.

"How's that?"

"I can't read her mind one bit. I know she's not a vampire. Well, maybe not completely a vampire. What do you think she is?" Sookie asked.

"Well, she isn't a fairy; else I would've been all over her like green on grass. She isn't a Were or a shifter, either, or I would've smelled it. I can't think of much else, though." Bill said.

"Well, you're right about one thing."

"That would be…"

"She is a good sheriff." Sookie said, finally.

Bill smiled and ran his hands though her hair again. He was glad that she wasn't mad when he told her about the Queen of Louisiana and her intentions for Bill and Sookie. In fact, Sookie stated that a vampire just showing up in Bon Temps after a hundred years _was_ weird and that there _had_ to be a reason behind that. He told her that his intentions with her changed completely when she saved him that night and that ever since then, he was in love with her. Sookie accepted, saying that they hadn't even known each other before that night so everything was fine.

"Yes. Yes, she is."

Just then the bedroom door opened to reveal a 6'5 Viking taking up the entire doorway. His blonde hair was cut short and slicked back, as was his usual trend as of late.

"Hope I'm not interrupting anything." He said airily as he strode into the room.

"What the hell, Eric! Do you _not _know the meaning of _courtesy_?" Sookie asked, pulling the blanket over her nearly bare body. Eric appraised her speculatively before turning his attention to Bill.

"What do you know about Lydelle Justice?" he asked.

Bill sighed, looking extremely annoyed. "Sookie and I were just discussing that. We know nothing of Lydelle except she's from somewhere in Kentucky. We were actually speculating on what you just said." Bill said.

"Ah, so it is rather apparent that no one knows a thing about this new sheriff. Bill, I want you to find out more about her. Everything. Where she's from, what she did until now, everything."

"And you couldn't use something called, I don't know, a phone to say that?!" Sookie said angrily.

Eric turned to her and smirked before he exited the house in the blink of an eye.

"Ugh! I hate him with a fiery passion that consumes my soul!" Sookie sighed exasperatedly as she slid deeper into the blankets.

"So do I, Sookie. So do I." Bill replied.

Lydelle got out of her car and walked into the Good Times Grocery Store in the middle of Bon Temps. She had just gotten off work and decided to make some groceries.

She was wearing some black skinny jeans with a gray blouse and black boots with gray stitching. As she got out of the car, she pulled on her black jacket and put her black Stetson on top of her head. She closed her car door and walked into the small store.

Lydelle was walking around the aisle's, picking up a gallon of milk, a roast, and some rice, when she heard something.

"No, please, please! I have a wife and kids! Please!"

Lydelle set her groceries on a shelf as she quietly walked down the aisle where she could get a clear view of the cashier. He was a middle-aged man with graying hair and he most definitely looked tired and stressed out.

Over him was a dark haired woman with an unidentifiable accent. She was rather dramatic looking in the maroon dress she was wearing.

"Sorry, darlin'. I need my fill." The woman said. Vampire.

Lydelle silently took out her two pistols and pointed one at the back of the woman's head and the other at the left side of the woman's back.

"Touch that man and I promise, vampire, you will be definitely dead." Lydelle said icily.

The woman slowly turned away from the man to face Lydelle. She could see that the woman had hard brown eyes and a small face with dark lips. She laughed as if she'd heard the funniest thing.

"And how would you do that, dear?" She said.

Lydelle held a steady gaze with this woman before she decided to talk to her. "What's your name?"

"Lorena Gloucester." The vampire said smoothly.

"Does Eric Northman know you are here?" Lydelle asked coldly and deliberately.

The smile vanished from Lorena's face and she looked pissed off. Her face tensed and her lips tightened. "Does it matter?"

"I believe it does, Ms. Lorena, as you are suspect in the murder of Andrew Bryce Taint, two weeks ago. You can come willingly or I'll just subdue you. Either way, you _will_ be payin' Eric Northman a visit." Lydelle answered.

Lorena bared her fangs and hissed. "I shall not, thank you."

Lydelle shrugged. "I can see you like things done the hard way." She said before shooting Lorena once in the middle of her head. She fell to the ground, eyes wide open. Lydelle stood over her and shot her once in her chest. Both bullets had been capped with silver thus meaning it would knock Lorena out for at least a few hours. She had to get her to Eric quickly.

"Thank you, Sheriff." The shaking man behind the counter said.

"Not a problem, Mr. Jackson. Think you could clean this up for me?" she asked as she hoisted up Lorena's unmoving body and carried her out to the car. She opened the trunk and pushed her in before speeding from the grocery store to Shreveport.

Eric was working on more paperwork in his office that night, Old Swedish music playing from his iPod dock, when he heard a knock on his office door.

"Come in." he said blandly.

Just then, Sheriff Lydelle Justice strode in with someone across her shoulders. She set the person down on the black leather couch before looking at Eric.

"Lorena Gloucester. She is in your area yet again without permission and almost killed the owner of a grocery store in Bon Temps."

Eric stood and looked at Lorena before looking back up at Lydelle. "And how did you subdue her?"

"Two shots fired; one in the head as you can see and one directly in the chest. Bullets were silver capped." Lydelle said coolly as she leaned against the wall, her Stetson covering her eyes.

"Is she dead?" Eric asked.

"Do birds fly? Of course, she'd dead. A better question would be this: Is she finally dead? And to that question, I do not have an answer which is why I brought her here to you." Lydelle replied absently.

Eric glared at her before bending down at Lorena's side. She was just now opening her eyes but was groaning in pain. There was still a small stream of blood coming down the bridge of her nose from bullet hole in her forehead. Her chest wound wasn't bleeding as the bullet had gone completely through.

Lorena was trying her hardest to sit up now and when she did, she glared hard at Lydelle. Eric looked down at Lorena before speaking.

"If I can recall, you are Bill Compton's maker, correct?" he asked lazily.

"Yes." Lorena ground out.

"And is he the reason you're here again?"

"Yes."

"But, if you came here to see him tonight, then what were you doing here on the night of March 10, the same night a human man, Andrew B. Taint, was murdered? We found fresh fang marks on his neck and no blood anywhere on his body which meant he was not alive when you fed off him." Lydelle interrupted Eric's questioning. Unlike him, she was very concise and straight-to-the-point about things.

"And what makes you think it was me?" Lorena asked.

"No other non-residin' vampires were in area 5 that night 'cept you. If you answer my question truthfully, Mr. Northman here will let you go. Now, when you fed from Andrew Taint, was he already dead?" Lydelle asked coldly.

"Almost. But I knew myself something wasn't right about him that night."


	3. Chapter 3

"What do you mean you knew somethin' wasn't right that night?" Lydelle asked, standing over Lorena. Eric looked at her before returning his gaze at Lorena.

Lorena swallowed and said rather painfully, "There were strange smells everywhere around him and I couldn't identify a single one of them. I had heard hurried footsteps around his car as I got closer to it, but something was telling me not to go any further, to stay where I was."

Lydelle was growing impatient. "Ms. Gloucester, I don't need the runaround. Get to the damn point, please."

Lorena gave Lydelle a scathing look before she continued speaking.

"I don't know what it was, _Sheriff_. All I know is that when I got there, that man's blood smelled tainted, but I was so hungry I didn't give a damn. I just remember drinking his blood, but it felt heavy going down and I started getting dizzy and I couldn't see that well. I ran down the road and collapsed outside a motel. One of Mr. Northman's vampires saw me and reported me but when he came back the next night, I was gone."

"And now you're here to fuck over Bill Compton?" Lydelle asked icily.

Lorena gave her a look as a red tear formed in her eye. "William and I love—"

"I don't think he loves you, Lorena. He's with somebody else and he's far happier. Mr. Compton is a _very_ close friend of mine so unless you like your blood at its usual _cold_ temperature, I'd leave him alone." Lydelle said frigidly.

Lorena's mouth fell to the floor. "Are you threatening me, _Sheriff_?" she gasped.

"Not threatinin', Ms. Gloucester, promisin'." Lydelle said as she adjusted the Stetson on her head. "Is there anything else you could tell me?"

Eric, who knew all too well the extent of Lydelle's threat, said nothing throughout this entire exchange until now.

"Sheriff Justice, she has told us all she knows. I am going to let her go." Eric said.

Lydelle smiled at them. "Well, fine. You do that, Mr. Northman. But, Lorena, know this," Lydelle said, smiling in a mocking way. "_Mr. Northman_ may not have a problem with you being in his area, but you have 24 hours to leave this part of Louisiana and if you don't, I will kill you." Lydelle said the last part slowly and coldly.

"Sheriff Justice, I will not have you threatening any vampires who are to come in this area and—"

"With that bein' said, "Lydelle continued, as if she hadn't heard Eric speaking. "Ya'll have a nice night."

Lydelle knocked on Bill Compton's door three times and waited. She could hear distinctly the sound of crickets, bullfrogs, and the like, all of which made up the natural night orchestra.

"Sheriff." A voice said. Lydelle averted her gaze from the woods around the Compton home to the man who owned it all, standing in the doorway.

"Bill," said Lydelle. "Mind if I come inside?"

Bill nodded and stepped aside, allowing her entrance.

Lydelle walked past the entrance hall to the living room. Even though it was damn near summer, Bill still had a fire going in the fireplace.

Temperature seemed to have no affect on him.

"You have a lovely home." Lydelle said, looking around. Bill nodded.

"Thank you. Is there anything I can do for you, Sheriff?"

Lydelle smiled. "I just came to inform you that Lorena Gloucester will no longer be a problem to you or anyone in Renard Parish."

Bill looked stunned, shocked, and completely dumbfounded. "What?"

"I saw her tryin' to feed from the man who runs Bon Temps Grocery store earlier in the evenin' and I subdued her and brought her to Eric Northman. She stated that she knew nothin' bout the A.B. Taint murder but that she had most definitely fed on the body afterward," Lydelle explained.

"She also said that the blood tasted rather heavy and she got sick from it. I am guessin' this was the sulfuric acid and potassium overdose that occurred to the man shortly before Lorena fed off him. That was it and Bill, I'll put it this way: if I see her 24 hours from now at all in this part of Louisiana, she will be a secondarily dead woman." Lydelle said, almost proudly.

Bill still completely out of it. "Do you know what would happen if you killed a vampire, Sheriff Justice?" he asked neutrally.

"I am familiar with the laws, cultures, and ways of the supernatural, Mr. Compton, particularly vampires. I am perfectly aware of what would happen if I killed her. And I wouldn't mind the consequences, either, Bill. A vampire like that deserves to die with all that terrorizin' she's been doin' for God knows how long." Lydelle said.

"Still, Sheriff, there is no need for that. She is still my maker." Bill replied.

"And a damn fabulous one she is, ain't she?" Lydelle retorted.

Bill swallowed and went to tend his fireplace.

Lydelle smiled a small triumphant smile. "Either way, Bill, she won't be messin' with you anymore. If you'll excuse me, I'll be headin' home now." Lydelle ducked her head slightly and left Bill's home.

"So, we know a vampire fed off him after he was dead. But what about before then? She didn't hear, smell, or see anything that might've helped?" Marcus asked, leaning back on the sofa in Lydelle's living room.

Lydelle handed him a small glass of vodka and sat down across from him. "She said somethin' told her to stay where she was which I think is a load a horse shit if I ever heard it. She's a damn vampire! What the hell could've stopped her from going to that man's body sooner?"

Marcus shrugged. "Dunno. You get the feelin' you're gettin' the whole truth outta her, though?" he asked.

Lydelle sighed. "I don't know what to think. I do know that whatever it was that supposedly _"kept"_ Lorena from goin' any farther must've been strong. I do intend on findin' out what it was. But first, I think we need to take another look at that autopsy report. I'm sure Dell won't mind me comin' in tomorrow night. In the mean time, I'm gon' drink this drink and worry about this case tomorrow. Long day." Lydelle said resignedly.

"Indeed, Sheriff, indeed."


End file.
